The Pull of You
by misslisa11
Summary: Rey and Kylo Ren are connected, but neither of them can understand why. As the Force continues to connect them, Rey and Kylo Ren realized that there is something between them. But what will it mean for the Resistance and the First Order? Set during TLJ, may continue into TROS. Slow burn. Teen for now but may change to M later.
1. Chapter 1

Rey awakens on Ahch-To, the light peering in through a small window in her hut. For a moment she is disoriented. As she stirs and opens her eyes, she remembers where she is and why she has come here. Luke Skywalker is the Resistance's last hope. Rey must convince him to join her and the Resistance to fight the growing power of the Dark Side and the First Order. Her purpose heavy in her mind and her heart, Rey is met with a rush of emotions: fear, concern, excitement, hope. She marvels at how far she has come from her life as a scavenger on Jakku, where she spent counting away her days, waiting for her parents to return.

More awake now, Rey turns over to her side on the bed. The most pressing worry in her mind is that Luke will not be convinced to rejoin the Resistance. So set in his ways of retreat he seems, that Rey worries that he does not have the strength or the will to once again become the Jedi master he was. Luke is much different than Rey expected the Jedi legend to be. So much hope hangs on him, and yet he has elected to remain on this island planet alone, closed off and disconnected from everything he once fought for. Rey also worries for her friends and for the future of the Resistance. What will happen to them if Luke Skywalker would not return?

And what was her place in everything? It was as she had told Luke: something inside her that has always been there was awake. And she was afraid. She does not know how or why, but the Force has awakened in her. She was unsure of herself. She had fought Kylo Ren and felt the Force course through her veins, but now she did not understand it, what it meant, and how to control the power she felt. The Force was growing stronger in her and pulling her two ways, between the Light and the Dark. She needed someone to guide her, a teacher.

Fully awake, Rey decides it is time to get up. Today she will begin her first of three lessons with Luke Skywalker. As she sits up on the bed, Rey realizes a presence in the room with her. She can see no one else in the room, but she senses that she is not alone. A slight panic crosses through her as she recognizes who is there with her—Kylo Ren.

Kylo Ren is just as shocked as Rey is at this sudden encounter. He pushes away the medical droid that is working on the wound he received— the slash across his face and shoulder from Rey's strike with her light saber—and gets up.

As quickly Kylo Ren comes fully into her view, Rey reaches for her blaster and fires towards him. The shot, though accurately aimed, does not strike Kylo Ren, but rather hits the stone wall of her hut, blasting a hole through it.

Kylo Ren gasps and reaches for his chest once Rey fires the blaster towards him, and then realizes that the shot did not hit him. He is just as surprised as Rey is. He reaches out using the Force, in a quick reaction, and tries to enter Rey's mind. "You will bring Luke Skywalker to me," he commanded. He realizes almost as instantly as the words leave his lips that his mind trick would not work on Rey. Perplexed at what is happening, he looks around, trying to see where Rey is and figure out what is happening.

"You can't be doing this," Kylo Ren muses out loud. "The effort would kill you."

Rey, enraged at seeing Han Solo's murderer and remembering Solo's cruel death all over again, spits at him, "You're going to pay for what you did."

"Can you see my surroundings?" Kylo Ren asks. "I can't see yours." He looks Rey deeply in the eyes, and says, "I can only see you."

Rey feels bare, looking at Kylo Ren. She cannot see his surroundings either—only him. She should be frightened, seeing her nemesis. Kylo Ren has caused so much death and destruction, after all. But she is not afraid. Instead, she is curious. Seeing Kylo Ren, Rey can feel the Force inside her, and she can sense it in Kylo Ren too. They are connected somehow—but why?

"This is something else," Kylo Ren says, also recognizing the feeling of some sort of connection between the two of them.

"Rey?" Luke calls from the distance, searching for Rey so that he can start her training.

"Luke," Kylo Ren says, recognizing the far off voice. He can her his old Jedi master in the background. Not liking the thought of Kylo Ren finding Luke and their location, Rey looks back at Kylo, a protective and fierce expression on her face.

This is the last thing that Kylo Ren sees before the connection is broken. Once Rey is gone, Kylo Ren suddenly finds himself feeling very alone, almost bereft.

He knew that Rey was strong with the force. He sensed it when she looked into his mind after he had taken her from Takodana. She had strength that she was not aware of. No one else had ever been able to resist his use of the Force against them. Rey not only resisted, but used the Force against _him_. Who was this girl? Kylo Ren found himself asking this question almost daily.

She was untrained, so Kylo Ren knew that she could not have connected them like that. And he had not done anything to bridge their minds either. So what caused this? In all of his training and studying of the Force, Kylo Ren had never come across anything like this happening before. Perhaps Rey was on a path to becoming a new Jedi, his opponent in the Light. He thought of Rey often—who was this strange girl from a nowhere planet? Why had the Force chosen her? But these thoughts alone could not have been strong enough to connect their minds, and he had never heard of any other Sith and Jedi having a connection like this before.

Kylo Ren did not understand why or what had just happened, but he did know one thing: he wanted it to happen again.


	2. Chapter 2

Rey stood outside in the rain, beneath the Millennium Falcon. The looming ship protected her from the elements, keeping her from getting wet. Looking out across the ocean, she reflected on the day, her first training with Luke Skywalker completed. While she was meditating and reaching out, the call to the Dark had been so strong that Rey could not resist. The Dark place beneath the island had something to reveal to her, and she wanted answers.

Luke, of course, was not at all pleased with how quickly Rey had gone to the Dark place, not even trying to resist its call. Rey understood his concern—the Dark side of the Force had corrupted so many before her, and the tragedy of Ben Solo's betrayal and turn to the Dark side was still fresh in Luke's mind. But Rey wondered how she could truly find balance in the Force if she did not know the secrets that Dark had to offer her. The Dark place was trying to show her something, something important that the desperately needed to know. She wanted to find out what the Dark place was trying to show her, and she knew that she would not be pulled to the Dark, like Kylo Ren.

Kylo Ren. Almost as soon as she thought of him, he appeared before her again.

Kylo Ren stood surveying the hanger in his star destroyer when Rey appeared before him. He was hopeful that he would see her again, but was surprised that it happened so soon, as they had only had their first Force connection earlier that morning.

"Why is the Force connecting us?" asked Kylo Ren. "You and I."

_You and I_. These works struck Rey. Her breath hitched. It was strange to think of herself and Kylo Ren as some sort of a pair, but it was clear that the Force connection between them was strong. Rey had never felt anything like this before. Her connection with Kylo Ren made her feel conflicted. He was the enemy; she should despise him and want to strike against him. But she knew that the Force was trying to show her something else. She could not hate him now, as much as she may have tried. She felt a pull towards him. It was almost as if the Force did not want them to be enemies, but something more.

Rey quickly pushed these thoughts to the back of her mind and chose not to betray any of her emotions. She did not want Kylo Ren to sense how she was really feeling about him. She didn't even really know how she felt about him now. After he had abducted her and after they fought in the forest, Rey had felt anger and hatred towards him, but those feelings had now vanished. Not wanting him to catch on that she was conflicted, Rey spat at Kylo Ren, "Murderous snake! You're too late, you lost. I found Skywalker. "

Kylo Ren surveyed Rey. She was being defensive. He wanted to know what she was really thinking. Her anger and hatred towards him did not seem genuine. Kylo Ren felt that the connection between them was strong in the Force. He wanted her to trust him, to open herself up to him. He wanted Rey to understand who he really was. He felt that she was the only one who might understand him, given their connection. They were connected for a reason, and he wanted to find out why, together with Rey.

"Did he tell you what happened?" asked Kylo Ren. "The night I destroyed his temple, did he tell you why?"

"I know everything I need to know about you," Rey retorted. But she was not entirely sure that she did.

"You do?" pressed Kylo Ren. He did not know how much Rey already knew, but was sure that Luke Skywalker would tell Rey some version of what had happened that night at the Jedi temple. But whatever version Luke would provide, Kylo Ren was sure would not be the full truth. Kylo Ren wanted to plant the seed of doubt in Rey's mind, wanted to make her question Luke and instead turn to him for answers.

Rey had a defiant look on her face as she glared at him. Kylo Ren felt angry that Rey was putting up walls around him. He wanted to show her what had happened, how he had become Kylo Ren. He wanted Rey to let go. But she seemed to choose to hang on halfheartedly to her anger as her glare bore into him.

"You have that look in your eyes," said Kylo Ren, "from the forest. When you called me a monster."

"You are a monster," Rey fired back.

"Yes I am," responded Kylo Ren.

The connection ended.

Rey found herself alone again, the sound of the pouring rain coming back to her senses. Kylo Ren had killed so many, so he was a monster. Wasn't he? She tried to convince herself that this was true, but she did not fully believe the words that had so hastily left her lips. If Kylo Ren really was such a monster, why did she feel so pulled towards him?

This encounter with Kylo Ren had lasted longer than their previous Force connection earlier that morning. Was the bond between them growing deeper, stronger? Kylo Ren had questioned her knowledge of what had really happened the night Kylo Ren destroyed the Jedi temple. Rey didn't know much about that night, but decided that she would ask Luke about it. Perhaps it would shed some light on how Ben Solo had become Kylo Ren, and help her understand why she harbored these indescribable and strange feelings towards him.

Meanwhile, Kylo Ren was once again alone looking out over the hanger full of ships inside of his destroyer. When the connection with Rey ended, he was angry. Did Rey really think that he was a monster? His hands balled into fists. Fury coursed through his veins. He wasn't a monster. He just understood the full powers that the Dark side of the Force could offer him. He liked that power, and he wanted Rey to realize it too.

_Why do I care so much about this girl, this scavenger?_ Kylo Ren thought to himself. It was true; he shouldn't care what she thought about him. But he did. If he was being honest with himself, he hasn't been able to stop thinking about Rey since he first laid eyes on her. There was something different about her. She wasn't like anyone else that he had ever met before. The Force was strong with her, as it was with him, but there was something more. Did the Force connect them because they were meant to join together?

_Together_. Kylo Ren liked the thought he and Rey sharing some sort of bond with one another. She was strong and had so much promise. He could train her, show her the Dark side and help her open up to her true potential. But there was more—Rey made him feel as though he wasn't alone anymore, as though there was a chance that he could be understood and accepted. These feelings were his deeper motivations as his mind raced.

Kylo Ren left his supervisory post overlooking the hanger and headed for his chambers. He walked with determination and confidence. His mind was set with a new purpose: he was going to convince Rey to join him.


	3. Chapter 3

Rey's lessons with Luke continued the next afternoon. Luke had revealed to her what had happened when he was training a new generation of Jedi. Luke thought he could pass on his strength and train his nephew. Ben Solo did have that mighty Skywalker blood, after all. But it was too late when Luke realized the darkness rising in Ben, and Luke knew that he was no match for it. Snoke already had too much of a hold on Ben's young, impressionable, and vulnerable mind. Luke had told Rey how he went to confront Ben, and Ben had turned on him. Ben crushed the Jedi temple, took several apprentices with him, and killed those who declined to join him.

Rey went for a walk to clear her mind. The tale of Ben Solo's turn to the Dark side was a lot for her to take in. How was Snoke able to corrupt Ben's mind so easily? Rey felt a pang of sympathy for Ben. He must have felt incredibly alone to have allowed the Darkness take such a hold over him. But she also felt angry with him. He had a family that loved him, so many people that cared about him. Meanwhile Rey had no one. How could he have felt so alone when so many people loved him? Rey spent most of her life waiting for her family to return; Kylo Ren chose to abandon his family and spent most of his life fighting against them. Rey could not understand how Ben Solo had become Kylo Ren.

As she reached the top of a hill and stopped to steady her breath, Rey's mind was no clearer than it had been when she set out on her trek. More than anything, she felt confused. She felt so much anger towards Kylo Ren. But she also felt sympathy. And perhaps attraction? With all the tension between them, Rey had to confess she felt something pulling them together. Rey did not want to admit to herself that she felt attracted to Kylo Ren and often stopped her mind from going there, but for the first time she allowed her thoughts to run away. Rey put aside what she _should_ feel about Kylo Ren—anger, fear, loathing. Leaving these emotions behind, Rey saw Kylo Ren in a new light. He was a conflicted person himself. There was still Light in him. The Force was connecting them for a reason. Rey wanted to know who Kylo Ren, who Ben Solo really was, beneath his mask.

Kylo Ren sensed Rey's presence before he saw her. Though she was far away, on some planet that he did not know of, Rey felt so close. Once he saw her, Kylo Ren could see that she was in deep thought.

"I'd rather not do this now," Rey said without looking at him.

"Yeah, me too," Kylo Ren replied. Kylo Ren had a rough day of training, and was both mentally and physically exhausted. Although he was glad to see Rey, he wasn't in the mood for another one of their arguments.

"Why did you hate your father?" Rey asked. Rey looked up at Kylo Ren as she asked her question, and saw that he was shirtless. Her breath caught in her chest. Seeing Kylo Ren standing there, somewhat exposed with his defined muscles, gleaming with sweat from his day's training, made Rey feel uncomfortable. Her feelings were confirmed: she _was_ attracted to him. She wanted to reach out and touch him.

Kylo Ren caught Rey's eye as she stood surveying him. Kylo Ren thought he saw a small gasp escape her lips. Rey felt as though she had been caught doing something wrong when she looked Kylo Ren in the eye. She didn't want him to know how attractive she found them.

Rey, breaking their eye contact, turned her face away as to not see Kylo Ren's bare, broad, and chiseled chest, and said, "Do you have anything you can put on, a cowl or something?"

Kylo Ren smirked to himself. He could see that Rey was affected by him and detected a slight blush across her cheeks as she turned her face away from him. He chose not to answer her question. Her reaction made him wonder—does she have feelings towards him too?

Rey pressed on with her questions. "Why did you hate your father? Give me an honest answer." Tears pricked at Rey's eyes. "You had a father who loved you, who gave a damn about you." Rey was suddenly angry with Kylo Ren all over again as she remembered how he had ended Han Solo.

Kylo Ren decided that he would answer her question with honesty. "I didn't hate him," he replied.

"Then, why?" Rey asked.

Kylo Ren felt anger boiling and rising within him. He didn't want to admit to himself how he truly felt about his father, and he certainly didn't want to talk about it with Rey right now.

"Why what?" Kylo Ren spat back at her in his anger. "Say it."

"Why did you kill him?" Rey asked, a tear escaping from her eye. "I don't understand."

"No?" Kylo Ren replied. He really did not want to revisit how he had killed his father. He was haunted by it so much already. He defensively shot back at Rey, "Your parents threw you away like garbage."

"They didn't!" Rey yelled back at him.

"They did," Kylo Ren resolutely stated. "But you can't stop needing them. It's your greatest weakness. You're looking for them everywhere. In Han Solo, and now in Luke Skywalker."

Rey didn't want to admit it, but Kylo Ren was right. She was so angry with him for throwing away his family, when all she wanted was to find hers.

"Did he tell you what happened that night?" Kylo Ren asked, referring back to Luke and the Jedi training.

"Yes," Rey said firmly.

"No," he replied. Kylo Ren knew that she did not know what had truly happened. "He sensed my power, as he senses yours. And he feared it."

"Liar," retorted Rey. But she could sense Kylo Ren's vulnerability and knew that he was not lying. Whatever Luke Skywalker had told her about what happened the night Kylo Ren left the Jedi temple was not the whole truth.

Kylo Ren could sense Rey's mind racing, could feel her questioning what she believed. He wanted so fiercely for her to join him. "Let the past die," Kylo Ren said. "Kill it if you have to. It's the only way to become what you are meant to be."

The connection ended. Rey, coursing with disbelieve and anger, headed straight for the Dark place beneath the island.


	4. Chapter 4

Rey sat in her hut, wrapped in a blanket to keep her warm. She felt so cold and empty. As soon as she left the Dark place beneath the island and returned to her hut, she thought of the only person she wanted to see—Kylo Ren. She knew that he was the only person that she could talk to about what had just happened, and he was the only one who could possibly understand what she was going through and what she felt. As soon as she sat down in her hut and thought of him, the Force connected them.

Kylo Ren could tell that something was bothering Rey as soon as she appeared before him. Her normal fiery spirit was gone. Instead, she seemed incredibly still and quiet. Clearly something had happened that had upset her. Kylo Ren was instantly concerned for her. He hated the thought of something bad happening to her. He wanted to know what had happened. If someone had hurt her, Kylo Ren would make sure that that person would pay.

"Rey," he said. She looked up at him at the mention of her name. "What happened?"

"There is a Dark place here," she said. Her voice was quiet and a bit shaky as she spoke. "Where I am. There is a place where the Dark side of the Force is powerful. And I went there."

Kylo Ren sat down across from Rey. As he sat across from her, Kylo Ren realized that this was the closest he had ever been to Rey. He could have reached out his long arm and touched her knee if he wanted. The thought of touching her excited him and made his heart race.

Pushing his thoughts about how close he was to Rey to the back of his mind, he asked, "Do you want to talk about it?"

Rey was surprised at this show of compassion from Kylo Ren, but it comforted her. Rey inhaled and began to tell Kylo Ren of what had happened when she was beneath the island and saw duplicates of herself standing in what seemed to be an endless line.

"I should have felt trapped or frightened," Rey described. "But no. I knew it didn't go on forever, I knew it was leading somewhere. I knew that at the end it would show me what I came to see. I thought it would show me my parents. But at the end, I was left only looking back at my own reflection."

Kylo Ren sat in silence, listening intently as Rey continued.

"I thought I would find answers there," Rey explained. "But I was wrong." Rey wrapped the blanket tighter around her shoulders and looked down at her feet. "I've never felt so alone."

"You're not alone," Kylo Ren said.

Rey looked back up at him. Kylo Ren did not seem himself. He seemed to genuinely care about her.

"Neither are you," Rey replied. "It isn't too late."

_Could this really be happening?_ Kylo Ren thought to himself. Would this be how he and Rey finally united? He had wanted her to join him so that he could teach her the way of the Dark side, and together they would be so powerful that no one who stood in their way would stop them. That was his plan that he had devised, and he thought the Force connection would help make his plan become reality. But now, sitting here talking with Rey, his connection to her felt much deeper than anything he could have imagined. In this moment, he did not care so much about the Dark side or the Light, the Resistance or the First Order. Those things that he had once spent so much of his time and energy worrying about seemed completely insignificant. He only cared about Rey. He wanted to forget it all and be with her.

Rey reached out her hand. She didn't know if it would work, but she wanted to touch Kylo Ren so badly. She had been right that he would understand what had happened to her and how she felt. He had comforted her in a way that she had never expected. Her connection to him felt stronger now than it ever had.

Kylo Ren reached out in response and touched Rey's hand.

Rey felt sparks the instant their skin made contact. Her heart raced as the power of the Forced rushed through her. She had never felt this way before. When they touched hands, Rey did not see Kylo Ren, for Kylo Ren was gone. She saw Ben Solo. She saw him smiling, looking much lighter than she had ever seen him before. Light radiated from Kylo Ren in her vision. And she was there with him. They trained together. Laughed together. Worked together. In every aspect of her vision of Ben Solo, they were together, as though they were two halves of one whole. Rey could see into his future. He had turned from the Dark side, and she had helped him do it. Kylo Ren fell away, leaving Ben Solo in his place. Rey had never felt so drawn towards him before.

Kylo Ren felt a burst of electricity jolt him alive when his hand touched Rey's. Feeling her skin against his, everything made sense. She radiated light, joy, beauty, and goodness. She was everything. All he could see, all he could feel was her. The Force was strong, but it was neither Light nor Dark. It was balance. They, together, were balance. And power. Kylo Ren sensed how strong Rey was, and how strong they could be together. He had never wanted her so badly as he did now.

"Stop," a voice commanded in the distance. "Stop!"

Rey turned towards the voice and saw Luke Skywalker entering her hut. He had seen her with Kylo Ren. The stones that made up the walls of Rey's hut flew away. Rey turned back to where Ben Solo had been sitting, but he was gone. Rain had started to fall, and Rey felt exposed. Rey felt rage rise within her as she turned to confront Luke.

"Is it true?" she yelled at Luke over the rain. "Did you try to murder him?"

"Leave this island now!" Luke yelled back at Rey.

The two of them sparred with each other. Rey got the better of him, and used the Force to summon his old light saber.

"Did you do it? Did you create Kylo Ren?" Rey asked desperately. "Tell me the truth."

Luke explained to Rey what has really happened, finally telling her the truth. "I saw darkness. I sensed it building in him. I saw it at moments during his training. But then I looked inside…and it was beyond what I ever imagined. Snoke had already turned his heart. He would bring destruction, and pain, and death, and the end of everything that I love because of what he would become. And in the briefest moment of pure instinct, I thought I could stop it. It passed like a fleeting shadow, and I was left with shame. And with consequence."

Rey understood now, finally, how Ben Solo had become Kylo Ren. Snoke had taken hold of Ben's vulnerable mind, and the person who Ben trusted to help him had betrayed him.

"And the last thing I saw," said Luke, "were the eyes of a frightened boy whose master had failed him."

"You failed him by thinking his choice was made," Rey replied. "It wasn't. There is still conflict in him. If he turned from the Dark side, that could shift the tide. This could be how we win."

"This is not going to go the way you think," Luke said.

But Rey was sure, more sure than she had ever been about anything in her life. "It is. Just now, when we touched hands, I saw his future, as solid as I am seeing you. If I go to him, Ben Solo will turn."

"Rey, don't do this."

Rey offered Luke's light saber to him. Luke did not take it, just as she knew he wouldn't. "Then he is our only hope," she said.

Rey left the island and Luke Skywalker, her path clear in her mind. She needed to go to Ben Solo.


	5. Chapter 5

"Alright Chewy," Rey said as the Millennium Falcon approached Snoke's star destroyer. "As soon as I launch you jump out of range. Stay there until you get my single where to rendezvous. "

Chewbacca gargled in agreement. Rey readied herself to get into the launch pod so that she could go to Ben Solo.

"If you see Finn before I do," Rey said, thinking of her friend, "tell him…"

Chewbacca offered what he could tell Finn for Rey.

"Yeah," Rey smiled. "Perfect. Tell him that."

Rey got into the launch pod. She exhaled deeply as she settled in. She was going to see Ben in just a few moments. Her heart threatened to beat out of her chest. Rey tried to focus on what she had to do rather than let excitement completely take over. She knew that this time when she saw him, she wouldn't be seeing Kylo Ren, but Ben Solo. She ejected herself from the Millennium Falcon and watched it zoom away as her launch pod entered the hanger of Snoke's destroyer.

When her launch pod landed and the exhaust settled, Rey looked out the window and saw Ben looking back at her. He had been expecting her. He wasn't wearing his helmet, but he might as well have been, for his face betrayed no emotion. A pair of storm troopers approached behind him, one of them carrying a pair of handcuffs. Rey had expected this; she was on enemy territory after all. The door to her launch pod opened and Rey got out. Ben took the handcuffs from the storm trooper and silently put them on Rey's wrists. His gloves were on, and he worked carefully as to avoid touching Rey's skin and meeting her eyes. Rey looked up at him as he placed the cuffs on her.

The storm troopers started to walk out of the hanger, and Ben placed his hand on Rey's elbow and steered her to follow them. "Snoke knows you are here," he explained to Rey, quietly so that the storm troopers could not hear. "I am to bring you to him."

Rey swallowed and nodded curtly. She did not expect to have to face Snoke so soon.

They entered a hallway and turned to the left. "Leave us," Ben commanded to the storm troopers. The storm troopers stepped to the side and nodded in assent.

Ben led Rey to a set of doors that opened when he pushed a button. They entered a small elevator. Ben stood in the back, with Rey in front of him, trying very hard not to make eye contact with Rey. He was afraid of saying anything before they were about to see Snoke; he did not want his thoughts of Rey to be in his mind fresh for Snoke to read. He did his best to clear his mind as the elevator started to move down. But it was near impossible for him to do so, now that Rey was here with him.

"Ben," Rey said, turning back to face him. Ben looked at her. He was surprised to hear her use his birth name. No one had called him that since his father. His name sounded nice coming from her lips. Trying not to think about this, or Rey's lips, he looked blankly back at Rey and let her continue. "You don't have to do this. I can feel the conflict in you, it's tearing you apart."

Ben turned and positioned his body to face hers. They were only a couple of feet apart from each other now. His heart raced being so near to her, in person and not just through their Force connections.

"Ben, when we touched hands," she continued, "I saw your future. Just the shape of it, but solid and clear. You will not bow before Snoke. You will turn. I'll help you, I saw it."

Ben was silent for a moment as he collected his thoughts. He wanted to be with her, but she expected him to turn from the Dark to be with her. How could he do this? He had done too much, gone too far. He killed his father after all! How could just return to the Light after that? But his need for Rey transcended all of his conflict over the Dark versus the Light. More than he wanted power, more than he wanted control, he wanted to be with her.

"I saw something too," Ben said, taking a step towards Rey and closing the space between them. They were now only inches apart. "And because of what I saw, I know you'll stand with me, Rey. I know what I must do."

Following his impulse, and doing something he had admittedly wanted to do since he first laid eyes on her, Ben closed the space between them and kissed Rey. If he had felt sparks when he had touched her hand, what he new felt was a full force electric storm. Everything inside of him awoke and came alive the moment his lips met hers.

It took a moment for Rey to let her initial feeling of shock pass when Ben kissed her. She had not expected him to do this, but once her surprise faded she found herself kissing him back. The connection between them was electric and his lips felt so soft and perfect against hers. Kissing Ben felt better than Rey had ever imagined.

Rey was the one to break their kiss. She looked up at Ben, searching his eyes, trying to discover what he was thinking.

The doors to the elevator opened, interrupting their intimate solitude. Rey took a breath and collected herself before she turned around. She saw Snoke's throne room, and encrimsoned chamber with a glossy onyx floor, and no windows to the outside world. Snoke sat on a large black throne with a dozen guards, also dressed entirely in red, surrounding him.

Ben gave Rey a light push out of the elevator and followed closely behind her.

"Young Rey," crooned Snoke, "Welcome."

Rey looked at Snoke, and then Ben appeared at her side and knelt before him.

"Come closer, child," Snoke continued.

Rey resisted and drew her light saber.

"So much strength," Snoke laughed as he used to Force to summon Rey's light saber to himself. He placed it on the arm of his throne next to him. "Darkness rises, and Light to meet it. I warned my young apprentice that as he grew stronger, his equal in the Light would rise. Skywalker, I assumed. Wrongly."

Rey looked at Snoke definitely. "You underestimate Luke Skywalker and Ben Solo," she said. "And me. It will be your downfall."

Snoke laughed again. "Oh, have you seen something? A weakness in my apprentice? Is that why you came? Young fool. It was I who bridged your minds."

Ben's eyes shot up to Snoke as Rey audibly gasped.

"I stoked Ren's conflicted soul," Snoke continued. "I knew he was not strong enough to hide it from you. And you were not wise enough to resist the bait. And now, you will give me Skywalker, and I will kill you with the cruelest stroke."

"No," retorted Rey in disbelief.

"Yes," said Snoke. "Give me everything!"

He used the force to control Rey's body. Rey was suspended in the air, her head tilted back so that Ben could see her face as Snoke entered her mind. Rey fought hard to resist him, but she was not strong enough. Rey screamed in anguish as her efforts to keep Snoke out of her mind were completely ineffective.

Ben steadied his mind and his breathing. He could feel anger rising within him as he saw Rey's face twist in torment. His hands balled to fists.

After a moment that felt like an eternity, Rey fell to the ground as Snoke released her.

"Well, well," he smirked, "I did not expect Skywalker to be so wise. We will give him and the Jedi Order the death he desires. After the Rebels are gone, we will go to his planet and obliterate the entire island."

Rey reached out in anger and attempted to summon her light saber. It flew at her, but then changed course behind her and hit her hardly on the back of the head before it flew back to Snoke, who again caught it and placed it on the arm of his throne.

"Such spunk! Look here now," Snoke said, and again took control of Rey using the force. He brought her to one of the red walls, against which a looking glass of sorts was placed. The crimson peeled back, revealing a window to the outside world. Rey could see transports leaving the Resistance's ship, blasts from a nearby destroyer heading out to reach them. "The entire Resistance is on those transports. Soon they will all be gone. For you, all is lost."

Rey reacted quickly and summoned Ben's light saber from his belt, successfully this time, and ignited it. Two of Snoke's guards were quickly at her sides, weapons drawn.

"Oh, still that fiery spit of hope!" Snoke exclaimed. "You have the spirit of a true Jedi."

Rey ran at Snoke, ready to attack. As she jumped towards him, he easily waived her aside using the Force. Ben's light saber clattered to the ground and came to a rest inches from his feet.

"And because of that," Snoke continued. "You must die."

_No!_ thought Ben, finally unable to keep his thoughts in check. He couldn't lose Rey and had to do something to stop Snoke.

Snoke took control of Rey once more, suspended her in the air and turned her to face Ben.

"My worthy apprentice," Snoke said, "son of Darkness, heir apparent to Lord Vader. Where there is conflict, I now sense resolve."

_I have resolution,_ thought Ben to himself in the back of his mind, _just not how you think._

"Where there was weakness," Snoke continued, "strength. Complete your training and fulfill your destiny."

Ben reached out for his light saber and picked it up. He rose from the ground and took several steps forward towards Rey. She was at his eye level, suspended in midair. Her breathing was heavy.

"I know what I must do," Ben said, not breaking eye contact with her. He said it for Snoke to hear, but he was trying to communicate with Rey.

"Ben." Rey said his name like a prayer, as she looked him deeply in the eye.

For a brief moment, Rey and Ben's minds connected. Ben's memory briefly flashed to kissing Rey in the elevator. Everything had happened so fast. Rey first arrived on his ship what had felt like only moments ago. Now her life was threatened, as she was suspended vulnerably in front of him.

_I won't let him hurt you_, Ben told Rey through his thoughts. _Trust me._

"You think you can turn him?" Snoke demanded, bringing Rey back into reality. "Foolish child! I cannot be beaten. I cannot be betrayed. I see his mind. I see his every intent. I see him turning the light saber to strike true."

Ben lifted his arm holding his light saber towards Rey. At the same time, unbeknownst to both Snoke and Rey, Ben turned Rey's light saber, perched on its forgotten place on the arm of Snoke's throne.

"And now," Snoke continued, "he ignites it, and kills his true enemy!"

Ben closed his empty hand, igniting the light saber that had now been turned directly towards Snoke. It pierced through him.

Rey fell to the ground. The hold Snoke had on her through the Force gone. Rey pushed off the floor and turned to see Snoke, who looked down at the saber that pierced through him in shock. Ben summoned the saber, causing it to slice through Snoke. Rey reached out her hand and grabbed it.

She stood up, saber ignited, and turned to face Ben. He looked back at her and ignited his own saber as Snoke's guards started to rush towards them. Ben took one quick and large step towards Rey, put his hand on her lower back, and drew her to himself as he quickly kissed her again before they turned back to back, ready to fight.


	6. Chapter 6

Rey and Ben turned back to back and began to fight Snoke's guards. As they fought, Rey couldn't help but notice how in sync they seemed to be. She could sense Ben's movements and could plan hers accordingly. They felt like a unit as they battled together, each conscious of the other's movements and lending help when it was needed. Ben crouched low and Rey rolled across his back, brandishing her light saber to strike one of the guards down.

Each of them fought several guards at once. Rey's light saber got caught in the weapon of one of the guards, which was like some kind of rope. The guard pulled Rey closer, and when Rey was close enough she spun out of the guard's hold and ran her light saber through him.

Ben, across the room, faced off against two guards. Their weapons flashed to attack him, but Ben held up his light saber in defense. He was able to spin out of their attack, impaling a third guard in the process. Ben extended his light saber, daring the remaining two guards that circled him to attack. He looked across the room and saw that Rey was struggling against another guard that was armed with two knives. The guard cut Rey on the arm, causing Rey to slightly stumble backwards and cry out in pain. He knew Rey was strong, but Ben couldn't help worrying about her safety. He fought hard and quickly so that he could get to her.

Rey was kicked down by the guard who brandished two lethal knives. She quickly pushed herself off the floor and rose to continue fighting her attacker. Her arm quickly was tangled up in the guard's, and the guard tried to lower the knife to her throat. Rey took a breath and reached out into the Force to find the strength to win her fight.

Ben, meanwhile, had managed to take one of the weapons of one of his to remaining attackers. He was able to kill one of them, but was caught off guard when the other struck him across the face, causing him to drop both of his weapons. Quickly, the guard managed to put Ben into a chokehold with his weapon. Ben managed to look across the room and make eye contact with Rey, and could feel her reaching out in the Force.

_Trust me,_ Rey quickly communicated to him through the Force and echoing his words from earlier.

Rey dropped her light saber from her trapped hand and ducked out of the hold the guard had on her. She caught the light saber low to the ground and rose in a spinning motion, effectively beheading the guard. She then looked across the room and turned her attention to Ben, who was still struggling.

"Ben!" she yelled out loud.

Rey quickly disengaged her light saber and tossed it across the room towards Ben. He caught it and ignited it, its blade immediately piercing through the head of the guard who held him. The guard crumbled and fell to the ground.

Ben rose and walked across the room towards Rey. She ran towards him and he caught her in his arms. Rey reached up and put her hand on his face, and gave him a small smile before she leaned in to kiss him.

Rey broke the kiss swiftly, remembering what was happening outside the walls of the ship. "The fleet," she said quickly as she ran towards the window. "Order them to stop firing, there's still time to save the fleet!"

Ben didn't much care about the Resistance or the First Order. He wanted to end it all and just be with Rey. He knew now that he would never be able to convince Rey to join the Dark side; in the back of his mind he had always known this to be an impossible task. She was too pure and good. Ben also knew that there was no possibility that he would be able to join Rey and her friends in the Resistance. How would they even stand to look at him with all of the things he had done? They would want him to die. He and Rey would never have peace in either situation, so for Ben there was only one choice.

"Rey," he said, drawing her attention away from the window. "It's time to let old things die. Snoke, Skywalker, the Sith, the Jedi, the rebels. Let it all die. Rey, I want you to join me. We can rule together and bring a new order to the galaxy."

Rey was stunned at Ben's, for they sounded more like something Kylo Ren would say, and Rey thought that Kylo Ren was gone. Rey was certain that she had convinced him to join her in the Light, she thought that when Ben had killed Snoke, the Darkness in him had lifted. But it was still there, beneath everything, gnawing away at his conflicted soul. What Ben had asked of her was impossible. What hurt Rey the most is that she wanted to join him and to be with him, but she didn't want to rule over anything or anybody. She only wanted peace for the galaxy, and the safety of her friends. She knew that as long as the Dark had a hold in Ben and the First Order continued to exist, she would not be able to join him.

"Ben," she said pleadingly, "don't do this. Don't go this way."

Ben could sense Rey's hesitation to join him. Panicked that he may lose her, Ben shouted, "No, no, you're still holding on! Let go! Do you want to know the truth about your parents? Or have you always known? You've just hidden it away. You know the truth."

Ben regretted his words instantly as he saw hurt spread across Rey's face. "They were nobody," she whispered, a tear spilling from her eye.

"You have no place in this story." _Except with me_, Ben thought to himself as he tried to persuade Rey. "You come from nothing, you're nothing. But not to me."

Rey looked up at him. What she had felt about Ben had not changed. His kiss still tingled on her lips, and how right it felt to be with him was still fresh in her memory. What was she supposed to do?

"Join me," Ben said, extending his arm. "Please," he said, almost begging.

"Ben," Rey said, another tear escaping her eye. "Please don't do this. Ben, I can't. I can't abandon my friends. And what about your mother, what about Leia? I couldn't do that to her." Rey swallowed. "Come with me, please, we'll leave and go to her, and we can figure all of this out."

"I can't," Ben yelled. "After everything I've done you know that I can't! But Rey, please, join me. This is the only way for us." Ben hesitated before he revealed his feelings. "This is the only way for us to be together."

_Us. Together_. Rey's breath hitched. She wanted so badly to be with Ben. But this was happening all wrong. Rey reached out her hand and started towards Ben, but instead of taking his hand, she used the Force to summon her light saber that was in his other hand.

Ben gasped as he realized what was happening. He quickly reached out and tried to pull the light saber back towards him. Ben wasn't surprised at her reaction, but he was angry and felt a slight sting of betrayal. He wanted Rey to join him, and with her actions Rey had refused.

Their strength was equal as they fought over the light saber. Both Rey and Ben tried to pull the light saber away from one another, but it hung suspended in the air between them, pulled equally from both directions. Suddenly, the light saber split in two with a large spark and a loud bang.

Rey came to on the floor of the throne room. The explosion of the light saber must have knocked her out. Her head was dizzy for a moment and she took a breath to steady herself before pushing off of the ground. In the middle of the room lay the light saber, split into two pieces. Ben was on the other side, also on the ground, likely knocked unconscious by the blast like she had been.

Rey slowly got up and ran to the middle of the room. She picked up the two pieces of the light saber and put them in her satchel that was strapped to her leg. She then crossed the room and knelt beside Ben. She checked his breathing and pushed his thick black hair out of his face, revealing the scar that she had left from striking him with her light saber the last time they met.

_We need to find a way to stop hurting each other_, Rey thought sadly to herself. As she looked at him, and could sense that he was still conflicted. When they had touched hands and when they had kissed, Rey could see his conflict drop away, and everything about them together was clarity and balance. But what he had asked of her would not achieve the future that she saw for them.

"I'm sorry," Rey said to Ben, a tear falling from her eye.

Rey planted a soft kiss on his lips and gave him one last long look before she ran out of the throne room to contact Chewbacca to come back for her.


	7. Chapter 7

Ben slowly awoke and found himself on the ground of the throne room. His head pounded and he felt groggy as his senses slowly returned to him. He opened his eyes slowly and turned over to his side with a grunt. The light saber splitting into two pieces must have knocked him out. Ben, his consciousness now slightly more regained, pushed himself off of the floor and sat up. He looked across the room to where Rey had stood, expecting to see her also knocked out by the blast, but instead found that she was gone. So was the broken light saber.

Ben felt a rush of emotions race through him: loneliness, disappointment, regret, and finally anger. Everything had happened all wrong. He remembered kissing Rey in the elevator, how good her lips had felt against his. That memory now seemed like it was incredibly far out of reach, like it had happened in a different life time rather than only an hour or so ago. He wanted Rey to join him so badly; he wanted the two of them to destroy everything, to forget the past and build a new order, one in which they would be together and they both would rule. But Rey had wanted none of this.

How could she do this to him? He thought she had understood him. He thought that their connection had mattered to her more than anything; it had mattered to him more than anything. But Rey had so much in her life that gave her meaning and purpose—friends that cared about her, a cause she found noble that was worth fighting for. Ben realized suddenly how childish he had been at thinking she would be so easily persuaded to abandon everything to join him. He grew angry, at himself for allowing Rey to have such a hold over him, at Rey for leaving him, at Skywalker for betraying him. He was angry at everything. Ben's blood began to boil.

It was then that General Hux came running into the throne room, a concerned and confused expression on the face. As his rage coursed through him, Ben realized that he was left now to deal with the consequences of his actions—the Supreme Leader Snoke, sat slumped on his throne, the life completely gone from him. The guards that were sworn to protect the Supreme Leader were all dead, their bodies littered throughout the throne room. Various objects were ablaze on the ground, and the red coverings of the windows were completely gone, providing a clear view to the world outside. It was not until Ben saw General Hux's face that he realized the gravity of what he had done. He was Supreme Leader Snoke's apprentice, the only person that Snoke had trained. Snoke's death, which he had caused, had now made Ben Solo the Supreme Leader.

"What happened?" General Hux demanded, shock plain across his face.

"The girl murdered Snoke and took off in an escape craft," Ben lied.

General Hux nodded. "We know where she's going."

"Get all of our forces down to that base," ordered Ben. As the anger he felt took control, it was so easy to feel the pull back towards the Dark side, causing him to once again to shove Ben Solo beneath the surface and become Kylo Ren. "Let's finish this."

"Finish this? You presume to command my army?" General Hux's face turned red to match his hair as he raged at Kylo Ren. "Our Supreme Leader is dead! We have no ruler!"

Kylo Ren had heard enough of this. Who was this lowly general to dare to challenge him? Kylo Ren used the Force to place a chokehold on General Hux.

"The Supreme Leader is dead," he said, the meaning of his words abundantly clear: Snoke was dead, and Kylo Ren was now the ruler of the First Order.

General Hux responded to this show of force and nodded in assent while Kylo Ren released his hold on him. "Long live the Supreme Leader," he said.

Kylo Ren gathered himself and stormed out of the room. His rage drove his every move, and his every thought. He wanted to destroy the Resistance, the Jedi, everything that Luke Skywalker had created. If Luke had not betrayed him, he wouldn't be in the position that he was in now. And if Luke hadn't trained the young and impressionable Rey, Rey may have been more inclined to take his hand and join him. All of this was Luke Skywalker's fault. Enraged, he mustered his fleet and headed down to Crait with an army that was disproportionally large to the feeble size of the remaining Resistance.

Rey, meanwhile, rejoined Chewbacca on the Millennium Falcon, and they made their way as quickly as possible down to Crait to help the remaining Resistance fight against the First Order. Rey didn't want to think about what had just happened, all the things that had transpired between she and Ben while she was on board the star destroyer. Rey was afraid that if she allowed herself to think to much about what had happened, she would either sink into herself with sadness, or be tempted to return to Ben and take his hand after all, never mind his motives.

To distract herself from her thoughts, Rey allowed Chewie to pilot the ship while she took the gunner position and fired at the approaching TIE fighters. Rey shot at the fighters as they sped after her, and tried not to think about the fact that they had been ordered to fire at her by Ben. The lead ship also fired some shots towards the Falcon, but Chewie with his deft maneuvering was able to escape them unscathed. Rey noticed that the effort from the lead ship seemed a bit halfhearted. The ship backed off sooner than she thought it would. Rey tried to swallow her feelings that there was still hope for Ben Solo and focused on the task at hand.

After shooting down all of the TIE fighters that they had managed to draw off of the protective fortress doors, Chwebacca steered the ship away to go find the remaining members of the Resistance and help them escape. Rey ran to the cockpit to help him scan the dry landscape for signs of movement for any clues as to where her friends may be.

"Over there!" Rey pointed, seeing a group of crystal critters emerge from a mountainside.

Chewbacca lowered the Millennium Falcon and parked it on the ground. Rey saw the last of the crystal critters squeeze itself through some rocks and emerge. Rey could sense that her friends were close by, and knew she would have to move the rocks to get to her friends. Rey laughed to herself as she extended her hand. "Lifting rocks," she said, as she used the Force to part the rocks away, revealing her friends and the few remaining members of the Resistance on the other side.

Rey was incredibly relieved to see Finn, and he ran at her and hugged her. So much had happened since she had last seen him, and Rey couldn't wait to tell him all about how Luke had trained her. She was reluctant, however, to share the more intimate details of what had transpired between her and Ben, and decided that she would only share the bare minimum about what had happened when she was aboard Snoke's star destroyer.

As Rey guided the remaining members of the Resistance towards the Falcon, she could sense something in the Force. It was Luke. Rey could see him, sitting on a rock on Ahch-To. Leia also perked up, sensing her brother. Rey could feel that Luke's life was at the end, and saw him looking confidently out over the horizon. Luke was proud that he had been able to help the Resistance escape, and be the spark that would ignite the Resistance. Rey sensed nothing but peace as Luke disappeared into the Force.

Rey was the last one aboard the Millennium Falcon. She turned around to ensure no one else was left behind. She then sensed something else in the Force—Ben. He appeared before her again almost immediately. Ben was kneeling, looking at something in his hand. He looked up at Rey as soon as he sensed her presence. Rey stared back at him. He looked different than he had before, sadder and somehow more vulnerable and lost than before. There was so much that Rey wanted to say to him, but she didn't even know where to begin. Should she apologize for leaving him? Should she ask him what he was doing? Should she be mad at him for ordering his fleet to attack her and her friends? Rey felt so many conflicting emotions that she couldn't seem to form any words. So instead, she looked back at Ben for a moment longer, and then closed ramp to the Falcon, ending the connection.


	8. Chapter 8

The Resistance arrived at Ajan Kloss, an old planet that the Rebellion had previously used many years ago. The Resistance sought refuge there once again, planning to make the planet their new base and recuperate from the fight on Crait. They sent out messages through all of their channels, so all who heard their prior distress calls would know that they had survived the attack and would hopefully join with them in the fight against the First Order. The jungle planet had some old abandoned dwellings, in which some of the Resistance members set themselves up, but Rey decided that she wanted to remain outside. She wasn't quite ready to be in such close proximity with the others, so she found an area in the trees nearby where she would set up her camp. Rey unloaded all of the Jedi texts that she had taken before she left Ahch-To. She had discussed with Leia before they arrived that Leia would take over for Luke and continue training Rey in the Force.

One of the medical attendants approached Rey and wanted to examine her. The attendant was short and stocky, and had a strict demeanor that gave the impression that she was not often tested. Rey had a large cut on her arm, and several other small cuts on her legs, but refused treatment. More than anything, Rey had just wanted to be alone for a moment so she could allow herself to finally think about Ben and everything had happened between them. The medical attendant was not happy with this, and would not accept no for an answer. After much arguing back and forth with the medical attendant, and interference from Finn who threatened to throttle her if she didn't take proper care of herself, Rey agreed to take a bath with some medicinal herbs and oils to help disinfect and heal her wounds.

The medical attendant led Rey into one of the rooms in the fortress where a hot bath had already been drawn. The bathroom was just off of the infirmary, so like the area where all the more seriously injured were recovering, the room was white, sterile, and extremely well lit. The room was small and consisted only of the bath, and on the opposite wall, a sink and a white bench that matched the white walls of the room. The medical attendant placed a couple of white towels down on the bench and then proceeding with mixing some herbs and oils into the hot water. A fresh set of clothes and a white robe were laid out on the bench for Rey already, as though the medical attendant had expected all along that Rey would acquiesce to her request.

"Stay in for at least twenty minutes," the medical attendant said firmly, as though she was still not convinced that Rey would obey her instructions after all. "No less!"

"Fine," Rey nodded. "Thank you," she said as the medical attendant left, closing the heavy white wooden door behind her.

Once Rey was alone and had fastened the lock on the door so she would remain undisturbed, she took her hair down and peeled her clothing off. She kicked her boots off of her feet and slowly lowered herself into the tub. Rey grimaced as the hot water touched her skin. It burned and stung at first, but as she sunk herself further into the water, it began to feel soothing.

Rey settled into the tub, her body completely submerged under the water. Twenty minutes. That was the amount of time she was, at the very least, guaranteed to be left alone. The room was silent, the heavy door blocking all outside noises out, and Rey could only hear the sound of the water moving when she adjusted her position in the tub.

Finally in solitude, Rey allowed her mind to turn to Ben Solo. Everything had happened so quickly that she had barely had time to consider everything that had transpired between them. Rey felt a connection to Ben that she had never felt with anyone else before. When they touched hands, Rey finally felt as though someone saw her for who she was, and chose to understand and accept her. That feeling, that connection is what had driven her to go to him. She knew that Ben had felt it too, for he had been waiting expectantly for her arrival on Snoke's destroyer conveyed to her that their connection had also been significant for him. The look on his face when she arrived in the hanger said it all.

And then Ben had done the unexpected—he had kissed her. Rey couldn't deny that she had wanted it, as they were alone in the elevator together, in the closest proximity to one another that they had ever been. But she certainly didn't think he would kiss her. And as much as the act of Ben kissing her had surprised Rey, she was more surprised at how good it felt, and at how much she wanted to kiss him again. When Ben had kissed her, Rey felt nothing but pure balance in the Force. It was as though they were two halves of one whole. Kissing Ben made the more sense to Rey than anything else in her life ever had.

Ben had then saved her from Snoke, killing the Supreme Leader. When Ben killed Snoke, Rey could feel him turning towards the Light. She and Ben then fought together, striking down Snoke's guards. Fighting together with Ben had almost been easy. They were so in sync with one another that Rey could sense his movements and plan hers accordingly, allowing them to strike in a coordinated offense.

But suddenly everything had come to a halt when Ben asked her to join him. Despite everything she had seen in him, despite everything that had happened between them, Ben was still conflicted between the Dark and the Light. And this had frightened him. Rey could sense the panic in him when she refused. Ben was unsure of what would happen if he left the Dark side. He was scared that he could not leave, that those in the Light would never be able to accept him and those in the Dark would never let him go. In his fear, he lashed out at her, attacking her vulnerable family history, knowing her sensitivity about her parents, in an attempt to get her to join him.

The trouble was, Rey did want to join him. The thought of her and Ben together brought her comfort. Ben understood her more than anyone ever had. Rey could not deny that she was attracted to him. Even though they had not known each other long, and still didn't know each other well, Rey felt as though she had known Ben for a long time. She wanted to be with him, to get to know him more and figure out what their Force connection meant. But Ben was asking her to give up everything that she believed in and to leave her friends behind. Rey could never abandon the only people who had ever cared about her, the people who showed her that she was so much more than just a scavenger on Jakku. Plus, she had no desire for the power and control that Ben was offering. All she wanted was safety for her friends. Rey didn't want to lead anyone. More than anything, she wanted peace. But Ben seemed to want power.

Rey sunk herself beneath the water in the tub, feeling her limbs become weightless as they floated around her. She felt immensely conflicted and confused. So many emotions rushed through her. Rey had sensed the conflict in Ben, but what if he did not want to turn from the Dark? Rey did not want to admit it to herself, but she knew one thing to be true: if Ben Solo did not turn from the Dark side, there could be no future for them.

Unable to hold her breath any longer, Rey emerged from the water, taking a gasping breath as she broke the surface. Rey wiped the water from her eyes and pushed her hair out of her face. She thought that some time alone to think would give her some clarity, but Rey now felt more confused than ever.

Deciding that twenty minutes had definitely passed by now and that she did not want to wrestle alone with her thoughts any further, Rey got out of the tub. She reached for one of the starchy white towels on the bench and dried herself off, and then slipped into the white robe. She began drying her hair, and then suddenly realized that she was not alone.

Ben felt cheated by his own memory at the sight of Rey; he recalled her features often, but she stood before him now even more beautiful and pure than his mind could have ever rendered her. Her skin was warm and glowing, her hair slightly damp. She looked as though she had been kissed by a summer rain: refreshingly warm and bright. Rey nervously adjusted the white robe that she was in, and Ben averted his eyes to give her a brief moment of privacy, also attempting to hide his face as he felt his cheeks flush.

"You really have the best timing," Rey said sarcastically as she anxiously pulled the robe tighter around herself.

"It's not like I'm doing this on purpose," Ben said hotly. He looked up at Rey and saw that she was looking directly at him. He softened. "I'm sorry," he said. "I didn't see anything."

Rey gave Ben a short nod, signaling that she accepted his apology. She stood there as they exchanged gazes. Rey had so many things in her mind that she wanted to say, but she found that no words were able to form on her lips.

"When I came to in the throne room, you were gone," Ben said after a moment, breaking the silence.

"You knew that I couldn't have stayed," Rey replied, her voice softer than she expected. "Not after what you had asked of me."

"I was so angry that you just left like that," Ben continued.

"Hmm, really?" Rey questioned, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "That explains why you tried to blow up all of me and all of my friends," Rey retorted.

"I'm sorry," Ben said, somewhat awkwardly. Rey could sense that remorse was not an emotion that Ben was familiar with expressing. She could tell, though, from the look on his face that he was being sincere.

"Okay," Rey said. "So what happens now, do we go back to being enemies?"

"That's not what I want," Ben said softly. He began pacing.

"Well seeing as neither one of us is willing to give up our stance, what are we supposed to do?" Rey was asking herself this question just as much as she was asking Ben.

"I thought I knew what I wanted," he thought out loud.

"But now you're not so sure," Rey finished for him. Ben stopped pacing at this. Rey understood him, for she felt the same way. She should hate Ben after everything that he had done, but she could not. He seemed more conflicted than ever. She felt so pulled towards him, especially now as he stood before her, somewhat vulnerable.

"Rey, I need to see you," Ben suddenly said, walking a little closer to her. "In person. Please."

Rey considered this for a moment. She had to admit to herself that she wanted to see him too, but how could this happen? Where would they even meet? And how could she trust him?

"How do I know this isn't some sort of ploy to get me alone so you can take me as the First Order's prisoner?"

"It's isn't," Ben said. "I promise. When we're together, I just feel…" Ben paused for a moment, searching for the words that would aptly describe how he felt when he was with Rey. Unable to find the appropriate phrase, and also unable to put his emotions into words, he settled. "Different, when we're together I feel different."

Rey knew what he meant, for she also felt different when she was with him.

"Look into my mind," Ben offered after Rey stood there silently giving no answer. "Use Force. I'll show you that I'm not lying."

Rey used the Force to enter Ben's mind, his guard down. She found that she was right—Ben was even more torn and conflicted than he was before. He was feeling the same confusion that Rey was feeling.

Rey looked him in the eye and continued to peer into his mind. Ben showed her a place where they could meet, a small and abandoned forest planet that she had never seen before, and a map of how to get there.

"It's an old planet I sometimes go to, to get away when I needed to be alone," Ben explained. "The First Order and the Resistance don't know about it. You're the only person I've shown it to."

Rey considered this. If anything, she could always scan the planet before landing to make sure she wasn't walking into a trap. But for some reason she didn't understand, Rey trusted that Ben was being truthful.

"Please," he said again, more gently this time. "I just want to see you, to be alone so we can talk without interruption, away from the Resistance and the First Order and everything."

"When?" Rey asked, before she fully gave herself time to think about saying no.

Ben looked more hopeful that she would come now. "The day after tomorrow?" he asked. "In the afternoon?"

Rey would have to figure out some way to explain to Leia why she needed to take a ship and leave Ajan Kloss for a day, but she decided she would worry about that later. "I'll be there," Rey said.

Ben gave her a small smile, and the connection ended. Now Rey just needed to figure out how she was gong to pull this off.


End file.
